Pep Guardiola would dismiss any suggestion that he has a strongest Manchester City XI with ill-disguised contempt. The notion that he has a fixed “strongest team” in his head is not only an attempt at pigeon-holing his players, it would also be disastrous for squad morale.
Guardiola has made it plain that a strong showing in training can alter his perception, and from there the selection, of his team for any given match. The message to all of his players is a valuable one - give your all in training, and you could force your way into the side at any given moment, and any easing-off could have the opposite effect.
The strength of City has been the depth of quality in the squad, even though in terms of numbers it is one of the smallest groups in the Premier League. That allows for rotation without a noticeable drop in standard, and explains why the Blues have been able to roll through long winning sequences that go from midweek to weekend to midweek, without any let-up.
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But there comes a time when the manager’s true preferences are revealed, when he shows his strongest hand and picks the team he feels is the very best he can put out. It is clearly not a permanent XI, and can change at strange moments - like when he picked Ilkay Gundogan ahead of the out-of-form Rodri for the Champions League final. One such moment is coming up, when City face Liverpool in a game that some are spotlighting as a Premier League title decider.
That game is book-ended by two Champions League quarter-final ties against Atletico Madrid, which complicates matters. However the manager shuffles his resources, you can bet that the team he fields at the Etihad Stadium against Jurgen Klopp’s second-placed outfit will be the one he perceives to be his best at that precise moment.
He has given plenty of clues, especially in terms of his defensive set-up, which is relatively settled once Ruben Dias returns to action after an injury problem. The attacking assets Guardiola has at his disposal have been carefully managed this season, so that nobody has significantly more appearances than anyone else, apart from the excellent Bernardo Silva, with 28 starts from 29 games.
Everyone else has either been rotated, rested or had a spell of injury so that there can be few complaints about chances being given - Phil Foden has had 18 starts, Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling and Jack Grealish 17 each, Gabriel Jesus and Ilkay Gundogan 15 each, while top scorer Riyad Mahrez has started 12, but is the only man to start all eight games in the Champions League.
So how does City’s strongest XI look, with that crucial period of three huge games in eight days looming?
GOALKEEPER - No quandaries here. Ederson is the undisputed number one, with Zack Steffen seemingly happy to slot in as backup.
DEFENCE - the full-backs are pretty much tied down, too. Kyle Walker’s pace is hugely useful in a back four that is not the quickest, while Joao Cancelo has redefined the left-back role, even if he is occasionally exposed as a player who is not a natural defender. The centre-backs have been rotated more than last season, but the choice boils down to two from Ruben Dias, John Stones and Aymeric Laporte.
Dias’ inclusion is not as clear-cut as it was last season, but he still brings a level of physicality, organisation and leadership that the other two do not possess, so it is a straight and very difficult choice between Stones and Laporte. The Spain international’s left-sidedness means that he shades it.
MIDFIELD - Rodri has nailed down the holding midfield role with Fernandinho a useful deputy in lesser games, which probably suits his ageing body if not his ultra-competitive nature. Bernardo has also been undroppable, producing a level of performance and a work rate that is nothing short of phenomenal.
With De Bruyne also a virtual cert - he has underlined his big-game credentials with goals in the Manchester derby, at Anfield and the winner against Chelsea, to add to his all-round excellence. That means Gundogan is the odd man out, although he is likely to feature strongly in the two Atletico games on either side of the Liverpool clash, with Guardiola liking his control and intelligence in games against continental opposition.
FRONT THREE - picking the best attacking trident does not get any easier, and a scintillating training session could make all the difference. But right now it is difficult to look beyond Phil Foden, Jack Grealish and Riyad Mahrez, despite Raheem Sterling bossing it for England in midweek.
Foden is a must, whether he plays on the left to expose Liverpool’s weak defensive flank - even weaker if Trent Alexander-Arnold does not recover from injury - or as false nine. If Alexander-Arnold plays, Grealish’s more subtle attributes will probably be employed wide.
Mahrez’s goal contributions - an amazing 15 in his last 16 appearances - have put him in pole position to start, although Gabriel Jesus’ ability to tie down Andy Robertson will be in Guardiola’s thoughts. That could mean Jesus is a surprise selection for Liverpool, while Mahrez - who has become a Champions League expert - starts both legs against Atletico
MY STRONGEST CITY XI: Ederson, Walker, Dias, Laporte, Cancelo, Rodri, Bernardo, De Bruyne, Mahrez, Grealish, Foden
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